Red Stars
by Cain the Silver Sin
Summary: Opposites attract, or so says an old Earthling saying. Arumat firmly believed equals attract, but what do you do when you meet a redhead very much the opposite from yourself in matters of the mind yet so equal to you in matters of the body?


**AN:** Semi-AU within the Star Ocean 4 universe I suppose? I just desperately wanted some delicious smut! Dedicated to AmorBour who wrote THE hottest fic involving these two. (Sadly the fic is now gone from here :( )

Arumat stared at the gathering around the table in a sulking manner, his arms crossed over his chest. He was already getting bored and he was losing precious training time by the minute.  
Why did he need to be present when he had already given his report on the recent expedition?  
He brushed his fringe from his face in irritation as he listened to an old and crinkly man that looked to be an Earthling representative. His hair desperately needed a cut.

"And now ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to give the word to the captain of the SRF-001 Aquila fleet for his theory on this matter!"

Great, another inferior Earthling that needed to flaunt his feathers and try to be of importance.

"Thank you, Commander." a smooth voice said and rustling of armour and papers followed as the man made his way to stand in the front as pictures flashed on the computer screen behind him.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Earthlings and Eldarians, I am Crowe F. Almedio, captain of the SRF-001 Aquila Fleet and gentleman extraordinaire!" he said and presented himself with a flourish and a silly grin.

The Earthling portion around the table clapped enthusiastically at the theatrics, a few of the female representatives sending him flirty looks as well. Even a few of the Eldarians present smiled at him!  
Arumat felt a strong urge to gag. Just who did this man think he was?  
By no means was he seemingly fit to be a commander of any sort with that kind of carefree and moronic attitude.  
He huffed low under his breath as the Earthling began his presentation, only listening in with half an ear. The clock on the center wall indicating 2 hours left til freedom.

...

Glad to finally be out of the stuffy room where the meeting had taken place, Arumat inhaled some fresh air and closed his eyes.  
Time to head for the training room then, get an extorting exercise done with and just take the rest of the evening off.  
Mere seconds after the thought had passed his mind, a voice called out to him.

"Hey! Arumat!"

Arumat felt annoyance immediately bubble up in his gut and got ready to snap a sour "What!?" at the offender, but suddenly stopped when he was face to face with the idiot human from the meeting.

"Good thing I caught you before you headed off! Honestly you did look like you wanted to be anywhere but that meeting! Not that I weren't thinking along those lines as well..." he rambled, his hand rubbing the back of his head.

Arumat gave a noncommittal grunt in response, not really sure on how to react to this very peculiar human.

"Anyways haha, I'm sorry I don't believe we have gotten properly introduced yet!" the Earthling smiled and stretched out his hand.

Arumat stared at the hand for a good 5 seconds before he took it firmly and shook.

"Crowe F. Almedio." the human said. "But just call me Crowe."

When Arumat didn't say anything, Crowe just smiled.

"Arumat P. Thanatos right? General of the 13th Independent Armored Division of Eldar!"

The Earthling had done his homework, that much Arumat could commend him for.

"Yeah." he replied, folding his arms and shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Is there anything you...want?" he added when the redhead didn't push the conversation further.

Crowe seemed to contemplate the question for a bit, a strange gleam forming in his eyes.

"Not really." he smiled, making Arumat quirk his eyebrow.

He didn't want anything? Then why was he talking to him?  
Ah yes, Earthlings had something that was dubbed 'small-talk', the act of talking to someone about things that weren't important under the guise of it being 'pleasant' and supposedly 'bonding people together'. Arumat didn't want any of that. Honestly, such a waste of time.

"Alright. Then I will take my leave for now. I have some training to see to." he said, briefly wondering why he had cared to add that last part.

"I see! You enjoy yourself, and we'll see each other…later."

Crowe gave him a saucy wink and smiled even wider than before as he turned on his heels and sauntered down the hallway.  
Arumat was left behind, thoroughly confused. What in the world was wrong with that guy?

...

If there was one thing Arumat never did, it was admit defeat. He could not be defeated. His biggest pride in life was victory in every single battle. At least up until now.  
Arumat had actually lost this one, even worse, he had fallen. Arumat had fallen head over heels for the stupid, idiot, redheaded human and he couldn't believe himself!  
Ever since the encounter in the hallway, after the way beyond worlds boring meeting they had attended, he couldn't stop thinking about the other. For some insane, unexplainable reason the Earthling had wormed his way into the back of his mind and came forth whenever he saw fit.  
It was all made worse by him actually having to see the other ever so frequently since they reported to the same office.  
Even at the training centre the other would show up around the same times as Arumat would.  
Crowe carried himself with an air of confidence and his stride spoke of importance and elegance, all very admirable traits in another being. All the winks and strange looks however…  
Arumat felt furious, but he was a fighter damnit! If the problem couldn't be solved by sheer willpower alone, seek it out and neutralise it.  
And that was exactly what he had done. Except it only made things worse.  
Crowe had been positively thrilled when Arumat demanded to spar with him.  
The Eldarian had scoffed at the almost childish glee and finally felt confident he'd end the silly attraction once and for all.  
When it ended in a draw, Arumat couldn't believe himself. It must have been a fluke right?  
Crowe had let out a shaky sigh as he pulled his hair tie from his ponytail and let it all loose. He ruffled through it with his hand and gave Arumat a look that could be described and nothing less than sultry.

"That felt really good huh?"

The silveret had gotten up and left immediately after that, having the most confusing and angry cold shower of his life.

...

One of the boldest choices when it came to choosing a weapon for oneself was definitely wielding a scythe.  
Wielding a scythe was reserved for the strongest and mildly speaking, lesser sane of soldiers.  
But another type of weaponry that was seldom mastered was the dual-wielding of swords.  
Many had tried and many had failed. A few could be called good with their style but no one had become one with it, like Crowe had.  
Arumat had watched the man practice his swordsmanship on several occasions from the sidelines before he began sparring with him.  
His moves were fluid, smooth, much like a dancers. His precision spot on and the power behind, deadly. His swords glinted dangerously as they caught the light in the room. Arumat would later learn that the very same glint could be seen in Crowe's eyes in the heat of battle. It only lasted for a fraction of a second but Arumat had seen it and he had felt delighted. Delighted someone took as much joy in a fight as he did. So he had continued the sparring sessions, both out of anger and fascination.

Crowe sank to his knees, ragged pants escaping his lips as he let go of his swords, letting them hit the floor with a clink.  
Arumat sat opposite of him, a few metres back, scythe flung casually to the right.  
He was breathing hard himself and mentally took a note that this was the 23rd sparring match between them that had ended in a draw.  
In the past, Arumat would never have accepted a draw. He would have gotten up to his feet again and forced every aching muscle in his body to perform one last attack.  
He rarely needed to do that, not before meeting Crowe had he been driven to such a brink.  
Crowe was at his level and that was an impressive feat. None the more impressing was it that Crowe was an Earthling.  
A race believed to be inferior to many in the vast universe. A race certainly believed to be inferior to Eldarians.  
Arumat wasn't so sure anymore. Crowe had put a serious dent in his belief of that.

"I'm going to hit the showers now. I have a report due as well, ugh." the redhead said with a grimace, standing up to collect his weapons and brush them off.

Arumat silently watched the other stroll off to the exit, quirking an eyebrow when he turned to look back at him.  
A smart smirk was all he received before the redhead was gone again and his stomach did a flip.  
He still couldn't believe he held such strange attraction to this man. A man and an alien nonetheless!  
Surely the attraction would simmer down when he finally won a spar wouldn't it? And surely if he kept on ignoring all the winks and looks, Crowe would grow bored of him and fuck off somewhere else.  
He heaved a deep sigh as he got up and gathered his scythe, turning his nose towards his own quarters and his shower.

...

"I want you."

For a moment, Arumat was unable to process the sentence. Had he heard him right?

"You _want_ me?" he questioned back, suddenly becoming very wary of his surroundings.

It was later in the evening after the sparring match that ended in their 23rd draw and Arumat had currently been relaxing in his room after a hot shower and a lighter meal. Now the redhead was standing outside his door, making his intentions way too clear. This just wasn't happening.  
A small smile crept upon the redhead's lips and his eyes glinted dangerously under the low light.  
Arumat held his breath, not breaking eye contact. Crowe closed the space between them and stood flush against the Eldarian's body.

"I want you..." he breathed, clutching Arumat's collar and dragging his face closer so that their lips were only inches apart.

"...to dominate me." he finished in a low voice.

Arumat's body reacted before his brain did and he had the door slammed shut and Crowe pinned up against the wall in mere seconds, his arms held tightly above his head.  
Before he knew it, words came tumbling out as he effectively lost against his body's pent up desires.  
"Say it." he growled in the redhead's ear.

"Say it, and you can have it."

A whimper was heard from the Earthling as Arumat jerked his arms further up to emphasize his request.  
Having a height advantage, even if it was only slightly, proved to be useful.

"Ah, ah, p-please, please!" came the beg in response.

Arumat didn't waste any time and claimed Crowe's lips roughly, still not letting go of his arms.  
Crowe responded hungrily to the kiss and Arumat groaned. He took the redhead's lower lip between his teeth and bit just enough to make it hurt but not enough to break skin. Crowe moaned into his mouth and ground up against the Eldarian, making him painfully aware that he was rock hard already.  
If anyone had approached him this boldly in the past he would have reprimanded them harshly and reminded them of honour and a soldier's code. But Crowe was a whole different game.  
The flame-haired beauty with the passionate eyes was his equal in battle. This was simultaneously a frustrating and intriguing matter. Meeting someone who could hold their ground against him was rare and few between and then behind the curtains this person wanted to fully give themselves to him in an act of submissiveness.  
Arumat could feel the raw excitement in his gut. Granted, Crowe was was not an Eldarian, and certainly not female, but these things mattered less and less by the minute. In fact, had they ever mattered?  
Arumat let go of the other man's arms who sank down to grip his shoulders as olive eyes bore into his own. He navigated his own hands to narrow, armour-clad hips and brought them together, capturing gasping lips in another hot kiss.  
Crowe finally loosened the damned hair tie and let his fire-red hair fall down his back and over his shoulders. He exhaled a small puff of air and looked at Arumat with his head cocked to the side, olive eyes half-lidded and a mischievous grin present on his lips.  
Arumat was filled with a small spike of conflict by the display. Giving in to what Crowe wanted would mean that he accrued a loss, something his pride could not afford. But he wanted this as well didn't he? That would mean yet another draw at most. Unless he could still play it cool and not let the Earthling's playfulness get to him. Thorough domination would ensure a win.

"Strip." he commanded, putting on his authoritative voice that would have lesser men trembling in fear on the spot.

Crowe just grinned.

"As you wish... General."

Arumat gritted his teeth at the redhead's use of his official title. Determined to not let it get to him.  
Clicks and snaps could be heard as Crowe removed his armour at a torturously slow pace, his back turned to Arumat. With every new piece, Crowe would look over his shoulder, giving Arumat a sultry and teasing look.  
When he was left in only his black, tight exoskeleton, he stretched languidly, a few of his joints popping.

"Aaah, that feels good..." he moaned.

Arumat was on him in an instant, Crowe was too good at this game.  
He gripped the redhead hard around the waist from behind and bit into his neck, growling low in his throat.  
Crowe yelped at the treatment, his arms moving backwards over his head to tangle in silver hair.  
Arumat bit firmly at one spot and grinned inwardly, knowing that Crowe would have quite a bruise there later and would have to be mindful to cover it up.

"D-did I... upset you, Gen-" the redhead gasped but was cut off as Arumat spun him around and slammed him against the nearest wall once more.

Taking a hold of flame-red hair, he yanked it backwards and hissed in the Earthling's ear.

"Don't play games with me, human."

Even though Crowe had told him he wanted to be dominated, the damned Earthling still made it into a power struggle. Pushing his buttons thoroughly, playing into his secret needs and desires. He had no plans to give in to someone of an inferior species.

"Listen, I have had enough of your sass. I am in control here, you are to do exactly as I say, understand?" Arumat only got a small whimper in response as Crowe squirmed in his grip.

"You inferior Earthlings just love your little games and oh how you love to talk! You just love the sound of your own voices!" he continued.

"You do have a pretty mouth though, I'll give you that, but I think that there are better uses for it than talking..."

Arumat raised his left hand to his mouth and pulled his glove off with his teeth, letting it fall unceremoniously to the floor. He caressed the redhead's lips, feeling them delicately before slipping two fingers inside, brushing them against the tongue inside.

"Yes, better uses..." the Eldarian whispered hoarsely in the swordsman's ear.

"Now, I told you to strip didn't I? That means the exoskeleton is going as well. I want to see all of you."

Arumat released Crowe from his dominating grip and took a step back to observe as the Earthling reached around his back and slowly dragged the zipper of the exoskeleton down.  
Arumat grinned as more and more creamy white skin was revealed and Crowe kicked the garment off his feet and stood up, stark naked.  
Arumat's composure cracked yet again as he let his gaze glide over the naked body in front of him.  
In Eldarian culture, body ornaments were strictly composed of one set of ear-piercings for both male and female for ritualistic purposes and different body tattoos responding to Symbology usage. Anything else were considered incredibly rebellious and even promiscuous.  
Crowe of course, sported a set of highly inappropriate piercings.* Arumat licked his lips, this man was truly a breach of every rule he had ever stood for and everything proper within his race, and he loved it.

"Like what you see?" the Earthling crooned, his lips curling upwards in a cheshire grin as he licked them to punctuate the sentence.

His olive eyes shone with lust and Arumat concluded he had never seen anything so attractive or arousing all his life.  
Crowe sauntered past him, brushing ever so slightly against his side before laying down on the silken sheets of his king-sized bed. Arumat's eyes followed him the whole way, appreciating the toned planes of muscle in his back and the slight sway he put on his walk, so obviously for show.  
The redhead made a come-hither motion with his finger and Arumat obliged, letting the light cotton pants and collared t-shirt he was wearing drop unceremoniously to the floor.  
Rid of all interfering objects the Eldarian climbed onto the bed and immediately seized the Earthling by his hair in a tight grip that had him whimpering.

"Now, I told you I knew of better uses for that mouth of yours..." Arumat murmured into his ear, nipping at it for good measure.

He released the redhead and sunk back into the massive pile of pillows by the headboard of the bed.

"Get to work." he commanded sternly, staring Crowe straight in the eyes.

Crowe licked his lips obscenely and closed the distance between them. He leaned in between the silveret's legs, blowing hot breath on his exposed member, making him shiver.  
A few languid licks to his most sensitive part almost had him groaning and he briefly wondered whether he had issued forth an impossible challenge for himself.  
He did groan when Crowe finally enveloped his cock with his wet, warm mouth.

"Fuck..." he breathed as he met the redhead's smouldering gaze and he set the pace to agonisingly slow, alternating between a few licks and sucking the tip while lazily moving his hand up and down the base.

He should have know, he really should have known the Earthling would be good at this as well. Really, _really_ good. The temperature in the room had risen and he felt hot all over. He threaded his fingers through flame-coloured locks and encouraged the other to take him deeper, which he obliged to immediately.  
Crowe's hands settled on Arumat's hips as he greedily took him all in, tongue caressing the underside of his hard member and leaving it slick with saliva. The Earthling was close to bottoming it as his nose ended up mere millimetres from silver curls and Arumat found it so incredibly hot. He knew he wasn't small by any type of measure and he supposed he found it fitting that the redhead could take so much, he was a huge smart mouth after all.  
His mind's brief detour came to an abrupt halt as Crowe increased both the pressure and the pace of his sucking, having Arumat breathing harshly, twisting his still entangled fingers in soft hair.  
This wouldn't do. His control was slipping and that was just not acceptable.  
Bringing his hands to the redhead's face he firmly stopped his ministrations and locked their gazes.

"Enough. Get up." he commanded and motioned silently for him to sit over him in his lap.

The swordsman obeyed without a question, his wide smirk telling the other he thought he was winning. Oh Arumat would so make sure that was not the case.  
He gripped firm buttocks, kneading them roughly as he ravaged the panting mouth of Crowe. A hand came down between them, pressing their taunt erections together and jerking them off in sync. Arumat bit Crowe's bottom lip in a warning, amber eyes narrowing and daring him to continue.

"Can't handle it?" the Earthling whispered lustily as he slowly let go.

Arumat gripped Crowe's cock firmly then, thumb stroking the slit and slicking the head with the precum gathered there. Crowe buckled into him, a broken moan escaping his lips.

"Don't forget who is in charge." he growled into the redhead's ear.

Met with only a small whimper of pleasure and ragged breathing, Arumat allowed himself a grin.

"Suck." he ordered, holding two fingers up to the other's lips.

Crowe took them eagerly, swirling his tongue around each digit, liberally coating them in saliva. Arumat slid his hands around to the swordsman's rear again, slick digits finding their way down the crevice and stopping to rub at the redhead's puckered entrance. Lean arms linked around his neck and he took the opportunity to close his lips around a tempting nipple. He slowly sank a finger into the awaiting heat and Crowe started rocking his hips back and forth in tiny movements.

"Ah, please, please!" he chanted.

Inserting a second one had Crowe writhing in his lap, biting his bottom lip and scrunching his eyes hard together.

"Ah just like that…" he breathed as Arumat started fucking him slowly with his fingers.

Feeling the tightness of the gorgeous Earthling around his fingers had his cock twitching. He was so hard it was on the brink of becoming painful. He needed to have him soon.

"Do you- do you need…?" the redhead enquired, eyes shining lustily.

Arumat raised a brow in question at the other but grinned when he was handed a bottle of lube from seemingly out of nowhere. The little devil had of course snuck it with him and planted it near when he was not looking.  
He withdrew his fingers and removed the bottle cap with a pop, squirting a good amount into the palm of his hand. He hissed at the contact of the cold liquid when he started stroking himself. It turned warm the instant he locked gazes with Crowe again and saw the absolutely starving look in his eyes.

"Come here." he ordered, his voice unable to be as authoritative as he wanted, instead coming out with a tremble.

Crowe sucked in a breath he didn't know he had been holding, raising his hips to position himself above the Eldarian's straining erection. He shuddered as it glided between his cheeks, settling at his entrance and he pushed down.  
Arumat swallowed Crowe's moan with his own as the redhead sank down fully onto his throbbing cock. The warmth and tightness unlike anything else he'd ever felt.  
They savoured the feeling for a little while, sharing deep kisses, before Arumat's trembling hands found Crowe's hips and gently coaxed him into moving. He leaned back onto the pillows, eyes glazed as he watched the other man before him.

"Fuck, you are so hot." he said hoarsely, knowing full and well he was coming undone, just not caring anymore.

Watching Crowe ride his cock like this, long, red hair framing his face, pearls of sweat on his chest and a mouth half open in pleasure, it was perfection.  
The usual playful remark he'd expect back didn't come either, as Crowe was just as lost as he was. Another draw? At this point he could very much live with that.  
The redhead moved in languid, teasing motions, swallowing him up in delicious, slick friction. Arumat groaned and gripped Crowe's hips tighter, urging him to go faster. The Earthling complied, biting his bottom lip as a keening noise left his mouth.  
Arumat groaned, the heat, the tightness, the urgency in which Crowe moved was too much, he was rapidly nearing the brink, balancing so delicately on the edge.

"Crowe…" the name came out trembling and rough, and it's so deeply personal and intimate the redhead shuddered in his arms.

"Don't- Don't say my name like that! You'll make me-"

The redhead couldn't finish the sentence as words had to make space for a broken moan when Arumat shifted him in his lap and made him take his cock all in to the base, grinding hard up into him in the process. The silveret leaned forward, making sure to keep him in place, and put his lips almost to his, separated by mere millimeters.

"And what if I want you to?" he breathed into the mouth of the other.

The redhead responded with a lust-filled groan and arched his back. Arumat didn't hesitate leaning forward to kiss and nip at his collar bone, moving further up to his neck and his ear.

"Yes, I definitely want you to." he whispered.

The silveret abruptly moved them from sitting position and pressed the Earthling down into the mattress.  
Pale legs and arms linked around his hips and chest as he gripped the redhead around the waist and started pounding mercilessly into the welcoming heat of his body.

"Ah! Ar- Arumat!"

Hearing his name like that, yelled out so lustfully and hoarsely made the coil in his stomach tighten and it spurred him on like nothing else. He found the redhead's lips and was met with an eager tongue. Kissing him hard and messily, he trailed his hands around to cup the other man's ass, spreading him even more as he continued his frantic thrusts.  
Crowe clawed at his back, surely leaving long, red stripes in the aftermath, and whimpering loudly as he got closer and closer.  
Everything went to white for a moment as Crowe moaned long and hard into his mouth, white spurts of come coating the crevice between their stomachs and muscles clenching his cock so tight he couldn't hold back anymore.  
He groaned against the redhead's sweat-slicked neck as his orgasm hit him full force, gripping the other tightly as he rode off the waves and coated his insides.  
Utterly exhausted and spent, Arumat collapsed onto Crowe. He felt so fucking sated and so did the redhead if his long post-orgasmic sigh gave any indication.  
Arms snaked around his back and hugged him tight, and then the Earthling was actually nuzzling the hair on top of his head.

"What are you doing?" Arumat murmured into the other man's chest.

"I am cuddling." was the simple reply he received and surprisingly enough, he felt totally okay with it.

"Alright." he chuckled, weaving his own arms around the other. He could feel Crowe smiling widely in his hair and hugging him even tighter.

They laid there, basking in the afterglow for a while before Crowe suddenly shot up.

"Oh fuck! My report!" he groaned.

Arumat rolled off him and he jumped out off the bed, scurrying around to gather up the pieces of his suit and armour.

"Damnit, damnit!" he cursed loudly under his breath. Arumat couldn't help but snicker uncharacteristically at the situation. It was too comical! He didn't even stop when Crowe shot him a hurt puppy-look, finding it even funnier.

"You're such a ditz." he said simply.

"I know!" Crowe all but cried as he haphazardly fastened his armour together. He ran for the door but stopped just as it opened.

"Hey. You're still free the rest of the evening right? If you want to… I'd like for us to have dinner together after I deliver this shitty report…"

Arumat blinked at the other. The nervousness that was radiating from him was almost palpable. And after what they had just done… It was actually cute.

"I'd like that." he heard himself say. No short 'sure', 'okay' or 'what' but an actual full sentence.

"Great! See you later then!" he shouted, already halfway out in the hallway.

Arumat chuckled to himself as he fell back onto the mattress. How Crowe could muster up such energy just a short while after the incredibly vigorous activities they had just done, was beyond him. Or maybe it wasn't, the fury of a commander who didn't get the proper reports at the proper times was well-known, Arumat had been there.  
Crowe hadn't said anything about long it would take him to deliver that report, but Arumat figured he could take his time getting back into the shower and relax a bit afterwards. Maybe he'd even have some time to test out a few new tinkering techniques on his scythe too.  
Standing under the hot spray his thoughts wandered back to when he first had met the damned Earthling, how he had utterly despised him on the first sight but simultaneously been so intrigued he hadn't been able to get him out of his head, and look where that had gotten him; 23 sparring matches ending in a draw. No make that 24 now.  
Arumat actually grinned and laughed then, feeling so utterly ridiculous.

Earthlings were truly peculiar creatures, especially Crowe, his Crowe. And be damned if he didn't love it!

AN: *Nipple piercings, oh yeah.


End file.
